Commandeering
by FantasyEmpress
Summary: Elizabeth is commandeering Jack's ship for her own cause. But when she takes his ship, will he end up taking something of hers...perhaps her heart? Sparrabeth. Complete!
1. Chapter 1

Jack considered the young woman standing before him. He had not seen her before, yet something in her manner was familiar. He thought he knew at least the name of every girl who worked in this bar. Her dress was rather more modest than what most of the women in here wore, but was somewhat revealing nonetheless. And what it revealed was certainly interesting, if not as prominent as the same curves on some of the other women. The oddest thing about her was the dark veil, black to match her dress, which hung over her face. Perhaps she was hideous underneath it? She looked like a proper English widow, except for the low cut of her dress. He felt very curious to see her face, so he detained her after she set down the bottle of rum he had ordered. She didn't seem to be going anywhere anyway. She just stood there.

"'ere Lass, 'ave a seat. If ye're gonna be standin' and starin', ya may as well sit an' stare."

Without a sound, she did as bidden, sitting across from him, her veiled face still turned toward him. He could almost feel her gaze burning through the veil and into him. He looked right back at her curiously.

"Why the veil, Lass? Are ya hiding horrendous ugliness or incredible beauty?"

She sighed in a kind of exasperated way, as if she had just been addressed by an obnoxious child. The voice she spoke in was obviously changed to make it unrecognizable to those around her.

"Did it occur to you, Jack Sparrow, that perhaps I wear a veil because I do not wish to have people see my face, not because I am ashamed of it or believe it too gorgeous for the common folk to look upon? In a port full of pirates, including yourself, do you find it so surprising that one or two people may not wish to be known?"

He considered this speech for a moment, then nodded thoughtfully.

"I suppose that's possible. But don't your, ahem…um….customers like to see your face?"

He didn't expect the hand that came flying to his face. He winced as his head swung to one side. He didn't deserve that. What was this girl's problem? Tortuga's harlots didn't usually mind their trade being mentioned. He got his answer soon enough.

"I am not a whore, Captain Jack Sparrow! I work as a waitress, not a prostitute! And I've only been working here so I could contact you!"

She was using her natural voice now, and it was disturbingly unmistakable. He was having flashbacks.

"_It must be terrible for you being trapped on this island Jack." "You came back. I always knew you were a good man." "This is the only way, don't you see. I'm not sorry." "Jack! We've come to save you!" "Will annulled our impromptu marriage. He doesn't want me to have to wait for him. He left me an unmarried virgin, acceptable to society, worthy of marriage to another, while he spends a miserable eternity alone." "Goodbye Jack. I'm sorry for everything. Will you ever forgive me?" His silence answered her question. But while he was outwardly hard and angry, his heart broke as he watched her leave. _

"Elizabeth! What on earth are you doing in Tortuga?"

"That's the longest you've spoken to me since we saved you. I came to find you of course. Why else would I be here? I need your help, because you owe me one for bringing you back, even if you don't want to pay up."

"I don't owe you anything! Bringing me back made us square, you kill me, you bring me back. Why do you need help anyway? Last I heard, you had your own ship, your own crew, and all your enemies were dead. And yet here's the great Captain Elizabeth Swann, Pirate King, Pirate Lord of Singapore, asking me for help! I must be drunker than I thought."

"Jack, shut up. Listen. Most of my crew was faithful, but there was one idiot who always seemed to be planning a mutiny. I should have killed him while I had the chance, but I knew most of my crew would stand by me. One night, most of the crew and I went ashore, including him, and I left two men I knew were faithful to me to guard _The Empress. _That night, the idiot went and killed my guards and took the ship. What I didn't expect was that he had hired some brawlers to kill my crew. All I have left is my four best men. I am going to get that man, and get my ship back; but I need to use the _Pearl. _If you're still not feeling charitable, I'm going to have to remind you that I am the Pirate King, made so by _your _vote, and I have the right to commandeer your ship. At this point though, if you behave agreeably, I will keep you on as co-captain for this voyage, and you'll get your ship back later."

"And how do you plan to enforce my cooperation?"

"Oh, I'll think you'll be plenty willing after you see what's behind you."

Nervously, he turned and found himself staring up the barrel of a gun. Her Asian crew-member grinned at him cheerfully. He turned back to Elizabeth and grinned.

"We have an accord."


	2. Chapter 2

Jack was sulking. Not an admirable trait in any male, especially a grown man, but he was sulking anyway. That little wench thought she had the right to just march back into his life, with her crewmen and their big guns marching happily behind, and on _his _vote, steal his ship right out from under him! The nerve of it! He was tempted to stomp over to her, pick her up, and throw her overboard. The only thing stopping him was the knowledge that her men would quickly ensure he ended up in the water beside her, and they would rescue her and leave him for the sharks and whatever else lived in these waters…he shuddered at the memory of the Kraken, the memory giving him even more excuse to glare irritably at Elizabeth.

She was standing at the wheel, wearing tailored clothing; blouse and breeches fitted to her body, yet serviceable on a ship. Her hair was titghly bound up, and she was smiling as she looked out over the vessel. Jack saw her grin get irritatingly larger as it found him, glaring up at her indignantly, like a dog whose food has been given to a cat. She was laughing at him. Laughing at the fact that she could rock his world with one order. Clenching his teeth, he touched the hilt of his sword, longing to challenge her and see just how well Will had taught her. Perhaps she was bluffing. Perhaps she couldn't handle a sword at all. But if she couldn't, and he challenged her, she would merely have him thrown in the brig of his own ship…and experience he had had before and did not enjoy. Barbossa had his own ship now, with the rather clichéd name _The Jolly Roger,_ and had ceased chasing after Jack's ship. Oh well, he was sick of this, and he wanted to fight her, to see if he could win his ship back. To his surprise, she said something to her first mate, who took the wheel, the headed down the steps toward him.

He opened his mouth to challenge her, but snapped it shut when she spoke first.

"Captain Sparrow, lucky as you are to even have that title, I challenge you to a duel. I can see you're dieing to fight me, so come along."

She drew her sword and ran it down his own drawn blade slowly, threatening him, giving him a chance to retreat. He held his ground. She struck the first blow, her cutlass ringing on his. She dashed and whirled. One second he was striking out at the woman in front of him, the next second she was behind him, laughing at him as he spun away from her sword. She made the fight a dance, spinning and whirling, stepping and skipping. She was better than Will. She was better than Barbossa. Jack was fighting a losing battle. He rolled out of the way of her sword. Was she trying to kill him? She laughed again, a melodious, triumphant ringing sound. She herded him to the mast, forcing him to press his back against it. She used her cutlass to push his blade up against his chest at an angle, the flat of the blade pressed against him. She kept pressing until her sword was pressed up against him, and so was she. She was infuriatingly strong. She adjusted herself so that she was pressed against him as tightly as a lover, but her sword tip was nicking his chin. He felt her press just enough to draw blood, even as he was highly aware of the fact that she was beautiful woman, and they had been here before, standing close, while she abandoned him to his death. Her whisper was almost sensual, but demanding.

"Have I proved myself, Jack? Will you let me do what I need to do unhindered, or do I need to lock you in the brig? Remember when Barbossa took your ship and you were willing to basically trade Will for it? Well _The Empress _is my ship, my freedom, and I will lock you in the brig if that's what I need to do to get her back. Understand?"

He nodded and dropped his sword when she backed up. She sheathed her cutlass and handed him a hankercheif to wipe the blood off his chin. He'd never thought of it like that before. Suddenly he understood why she'd been so angry at his willingness to trade Will. At least he had her garuntee that he would get the _Pearl _back. He watched her walk away, saw her men slap her on the back as if she were one of them, and determined that someday he would beat her in a duel.

In the meantime, there was a beautiful, challenging, intelligent woman on his ship, and he was going to make the most of it.

**A/N: I've always thought it would be awesome to have Jack and Elizabeth swordfight, ever since I read it on a forum or something. **


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: If anybody who reads this is Chinese, or knows more about China than I do, then I apologize for the completely made up, goofy sounding names of Elizabeth's crewmen. **

Elizabeth sighed. She knew she shouldn't have made Jack mad and laughed at him. Since Will left to do his grim duty alone, she had found herself becoming the completely independent woman she had always dreamed of being. She had always known Will was holding her back. She had also found herself losing all vestiges of ladylikeness. To laugh at Jack had been mean, but their was something so delightful about being able to beat him. She knew he wasn't at his best, he didn't concentrate, just fought with anger. If he had been calm, there was a chance he could have beaten her. Perhaps someday she would offer him a rematch. For the moment, she was too set on her purpose. She wanted _The Empress _back.

The ship she had inherited from Sao Feng had become just as important to her as _The Black Pearl _was to Jack. She had never fully understood Jack's determination to get his ship back from Barbossa; until now. That was why she was willing to exploit her position as Pirate King, duel and beat Jack, anything she could to get her ship back. _The Empress _was her home, and the four crewmen she had left were like family to her. Gon Feng, Sao Feng's cousin and Elizabeth's first mate, had been somewhat angry when Sao Feng willed her his ship. Later that night, however, when she had volunteered to go to the brig with the crew, despite being offered a better place, he had begun to respect her, and later to like her. She considered him as a brother. Yang Po, Tir Min, and Yushma Wasit were all extremely devoted to her and would die for her if need be. The rest of the crew, who had been assassinated, had not been as close or devoted to her, but were rather devoted to Gon Feng. She was sorry they had died, but did not mourn them personally like she would if any of these four were killed.

Now that she had made her point to Jack, she hoped to reestablish their former conection. They had been friends, of a sort, at one point, and she liked him enough to want that back. She still found herself frightened, however, by the intense attraction she felt for him. When she had pressed him back against the mast, an all too familiar position, it had been all she could do not to raise her lips to his. She wondered what he would have done if she had. Probably pushed her away and run her through with his sword. She went into the captain's cabin, suddenly realizing there may be some issues with sleeping spaces. Would Jack rebel if she took his cabin? Or worse, would he insist on sleeping here too? Sighing again, she sent and sat down at his desk, and began examinging the large map laid out there. Where would Kling Lee take her ship? How on earth was she going to track him down? Suddenly, something hit her. Of course! Jack's compass! Yet she was hesitant to force him to give up anything else important to her. What were the chances she could wheedle him into lending it to him willingly? Not high, at the moment, but in a few days, if she was as pleasant, and perhaps flirtatious, as need be, he might be willing to let her borrow it.


	4. Chapter 4

Jack watched Elizabeth go into his cabin and gritted his teeth. He understood her reasons now, but that didn't make it any more fun to have a woman beat him in a duel, take over his ship, and move into his cabin. Especially when it was the same woman who had killed him; he had had people attempting to kill him for years, but she was the only one who had succeeded. Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to see the humor in his situation. He had wished privately that Elizabeth would come back, that he could see her again, and now here she was, and he was seething about it. Ironic. But she was driving him mad. Irritated, but controlling it, he walked to his cabin door and forced himself to knock.

"Come in."

He entered hesitantly. She was sitting at _his_ desk, mulling over _his_ map. She was in _his _chair. He fought back a mysterious and irritating feeling of pleasure at having her in here, so at home with all things his. He forced himself to grin at her, and she looked up with a matching smile.

"'Ello Captain Swann. I'm rather good with maps if you're needing a hand figuring something out."

She smiled and stood up, motioning for him to take the vacated seat. Pleased that she had admitted he was better at something, he sat down, feeling the warmth of her still on the chair.

"Now, what are you looking fer exactly?"

"Well, I need to figure out where that idiot Kling Lee has taken my ship. I really have no notion of where he would go. My first thought normally would be Tortuga, but that's where he started, so I have no real ideas left. Do you?"

He knew the easiest thing to do would be to give her his compass, but it was probably the one thing she had not demanded from him, and he wasn't about to offer over his last piece of normalacy. Not yet anyway. Maybe eventually, but not yet. For the moment, he had some good ideas about where the mutineer would head. He would make Elizabeth earn that compass, but it was possible they wouldn't need it. He pointed to a small island on the map, which was really no more than a dot and had no marked name.

"This here speck of land is called Kin Lee Isle. A lot of Chinese folks berth their ships there, and I wouldn't be surprised if Kling Lee knows some people there. He may even be related to the fellow who named the island. I'd say it'd be a good idea to go there first. Most of the folks there are just merchants, but they don't get involved with pirate affairs. They won't turn us in, they'll just stay out of our way. And there isn't really any law there to turn us in to."

"Good, we'll head there then. Would you chart a course please?"

He saw that it was hard for her to ask, and harder still for her to say please, and nodded willingly.

"We should be there in three or four days. For the meantime, I've instructed my crew to obey you and yours. Where will I be sleeping?"

He saw a flash of guilt in her eyes, but was still shocked at what she said when she spoke.

"Jack, they're your crew. I need their cooperation, but you can still be in charge of them. You're the one charting the course and telling me where we should go. And you can keep your cabin, I'll sleep with the crew. I trust your crew not to harm me, but I'll keep my men sleeping on all four sides of me. It's getting dark, and I'm tired, so I'll head down there now. Goodnight Jack."

Stunned, he stared at her silently as she approached the door. Why the sudden respect for him? He didn't quite know why he responded as he did, but before he knew it the words were out of his mouth and could not be retracted.

"It's all right, Elizabeth, you can have this cabin. It's not fitting for you to be sleeping with all those dirty smelly old sailors. I'll sleep down there. I would like to keep control of my crew though. Goodnight."

He moved past her and out the door. He heard the locks turn behind him as he assigned several men to guard duties and then headed down the stairs to the crew's quarters.

Two hours later, still unable to sleep in the swinging, rough-clothed hammock, he realized that Captain Elizabeth Swann had once again managed to play him like a fiddle, and he determined he would get revenge.


	5. Chapter 5

Elizabeth chuckled in the darkness as she laid back on Jack's bed. She had maniputlated him perfectly. She made him feel respected, then didn't even ask for his room, and as she had expected, he volunteered it almost immediately. It was by continueing to do this that she would eventually get the compass from him. She wouldn't ask, but she would make him feel guilty for not offering it. Though if his idea about Kin Lee Isle was right, she may never even need it. Time would tell. For the moment, she had a comfortable room to sleep in, and it was willingly offered.

The bed smelled like Jack. Rum and sea salt. Sighing, she let herself remember the days before he died, when they had had their little flirtation aboard the _Pearl. _Then, he had smelled like cayenne pepper. She still wasn't quite sure why. Rum, sea salt, and cayenne pepper. What an odd mixture. He had been so angry with her after they rescued him, and yet he had voted her pirate king and given up immortality to save Will, for her. It didn't matter that she and Will had annulled their impromptu marriage, she loved Will, as a brother and friend, and Jack had saved her from losing him. Yet he had not even said goodbye to her when she left. Now, he did not seem averse to a mutual respect, and his anger seemed more fueled by her commandeering of his ship than her betrayal a year and a half ago. She found herself wanting more. She wanted to be his friend, and she wanted to be more. She shook the thoughts from her head and turned over, drawing the warm sheets up over her shoulders.

She was almost asleep when she heard the doorknob jangle. Instantly awake, she reached under the pillow and drew out the dagger she had hidden there. Holding it silently, she listened as the door creaked open. It had been locked, but whoever it was had evidently picked the lock. She knew Jack had hired one or two men she didn't know, who might be willing to harm her or steal from her. What she didn't understand was why the night guard hadn't stopped the intruder. She heard the door quietly click shut again, then nothing. The ship creaked and groaned, but she heard nothing out of the ordinary. She listened for what seemed a small eternity, but there was still no sound and she felt herself becoming sleepy again. She fought to stay awake, but she was losing, and she knew she might die for it. She pricked her finger on the dagger, and the pain jolted her back to full awareness.

In the darkness, she sensed a figure near the bed, but she had heard nothing. She tensed, ready to strike, but it was too late. She gasped as cold water poured over her head and ran down her body, followed by steaming hot water. She dropped the dagger to the floor and sat shivering and wet, as a lamp was lit and she found herself looking up through dripping hair at the smirking face of Captain Jack Sparrow. He actually burst out laughing when he saw her in the light.

"Lizzie, you look like a wet dog!"

He was laughing harder than she had ever seen him laugh. For all his witty humor and smirks, Jack didn't actually laugh all that much. Idignant, she snarled at him.

"May I ask why you snuck in here and doused me as if I were on fire? As temporary captain of this vessel, I could have you keelhauled for this!"

He gulped in a deep breath and calmed himself.

"Did you really think you were going to get away unscathed after tricking me into giving up my cabin and making me think it was my own choice? Those hammocks are absolutely terrible, and I suspect you knew it! I finely understand why the crew are always complaining about their sleeping quarters! Now then, Darlin', wrap a dry blanket around you and feel free to sleep in the armchair."

In the dim light, he pulled the drenched sheet of the bed and tossed it into a corner before flopping down on the bare mattress and pulling the covers over himself. He was wearing only breeches and shirt, having dropped the rest of his stuff near the door. Shivering, she huddled in the blanket he tossed her and sat down in the cushioned chair by the bed. Jack blew out the lamp, and within minutes she heard him snoring.

As she slowly felt warmth and drowsiness, if not dryness, return to her body, she smiled to herself. She supposed she deserved this. Her little prank had turned against her, but she was quite happy, because Jack had called her "Lizzie" and "Darlin'", two things he had never called her since she killed him. Somewhere amidst this manipulation gone wrong, they had become friends again, and Elizabeth was completely content as she drifted off to sleep.

**A/N: Random fact: to "keelhaul" was a form of nautical punishment in which the offender was tied to a rope and dragged under the ship's keel, from one side to the other. Because the underside of ships were covered in barnacles and such, he would come up with his back all ripped open from being dragged over them. Pleasant, eh? **


	6. Chapter 6

Jack woke in the morning to shuffling sounds in his cabin. He rolled over onto his back and found himself staring up at Elizabeth Swann. She was holding a bucket of water over her head, and the grin on her face was pure evil. He only got out "No!" before cold water poured over his head, into his mouth and nostrils. Gasping and spluttering and yelling obscenities, he got to his feet waving his hands, trying to catch Elizabeth. She dodged him, laughing and teasing.

"Get back here woman! What did you do that for, you filthy landlubbin' wench?!"

"Payback. You did the same to me last night. Remember? Kicked me out of a bed you willingly offered, and poured cold and hot water over me! I almost stabbed you! You ought to be more careful! Now, get changed and man the wheel, Captain Sparrow!"

She left, and he peeled off his sopping clothes muttering irritably under his breath. Suddenly, he grinned. Elizabeth must have spent the night in here. Which meant that, despite all his anger at her since she killed him, she still trusted him with her honor and her life. She was not afraid that he would rape or kill her in the night. Perhaps there was a chance that they could again be what they had been before. Though he wasn't quite sure exactly _what _they had been. Friends? Lustees? Was that even a word? Oh well, despite that she was domineering and irritating, he was glad to have her back.

He buttoned up and irritatingly crisp and blindingly white shirt and frowned at his reflection in the small mirror on the wall. Too clean. Far too clean. But a day out in the sun and sea spray would fix that. He decided against the vest and coat today. He set his hat on his head gingerly, stuffed his pistol into his belt, and made sure his cutlass was within easy reach. He drew it out experimentally to make sure it wasn't catching on anything. It would be a very bad idea to be caught in a battle with a sword that couldn't be drawn. It drew out smoothly. He sheathed it and headed for the door, grabbing a bottle of rum off the desk as he passed.

It was a very sunny day, and Jack squinted against the light as he came out. Elizabeth had changed out of her still damp clothes and was wearing a blouse with the three top buttons undone, which was rather distracting. She saw his gaze roam and frowned.

"Ahem. I'm up here Captain Sparrow."

Smirking, he raised his eyes to her glaring face.

"Oh come on Lizzie. You stole my ship, the least you can do is let me eyeball you, eh?"

She laughed despite herself.

"Shut your oversized mouth and man the wheel, Captain Sparrow."

She walked away, took a spyglass from her first mate, and began climbing the rigging. He watched her as he walked toward the wheel. She was quick and nimble and sure footed. Within two minutes she was standing in the crow's nest, peering around through the glass. Apparently seeing nothing of interest, she climbed down as easily and quickly as she had climbed up. Jack had taken the wheel from Cotton and now watched as Elizabeth came back towards him. He noticed she had fastened up one of the formerly opened buttons. He smirked and she scrunched up her nose at him. It made him think of a rabbit, a nearly forgotten land animal from his childhood. Bunnies, the little neighborhood girls used to call them. He stored that bit of information away, deciding it would be a good thing to call her when he wanted to irritate her.

"Captain Sparrow, how are you going to find Kin Lee Island with that compass? Take this one."

She tossed him a compass and her stared at it almost reverently without opening it. It was a deep ebony, with pure gold inlays. More a work of art than a practical tool, but sturdy enough to withstand its job. Opening it, he jumped when it began playing the tune from Calypso's locket. Golden scrollwork images covered the insiders, depicting a beautiful woman holding a heart in her hand. The needle, painted with gold filigree, pointed directly north. He looked up at Elizabeth.

"Where did you get this?"

"It was Davy Jones'. Will found it on _The Flying Dutchman _and gave it to me before he left. I think it may be the match to your compass, except it doesn't do what yours does. It protects itself from damage. Scratch it."

Hesitantly Jack drew a dagger from his belt and drew a deep gash in the black beauty of the compass. Within seconds, it was perfect again. Jack looked up at Elizabeth questioningly.

"Why would Calypso make something so completely useless? Of course, it points north, but she would usually make it do something more impressive, like my compass."

"I don't think Calypso trusted Jones, even before their mutual betrayals of each other. She didn't want to give him too much power. So instead, she gave him a reminder of her that would last forever, but could not in any way be used against her. Watch this."

She took the compass from him, then she walked over to the rail and casually threw the compass overboard. It disappeared, then the ocean spewed it out, and it landed with a small clunk on the deck at Elizabeth's feet. Jack laughed and picked it up.

"A bit too stubborn for it's own good, ain't it? Reminds me of some people I know."

He flipped it open and drew a rough sketch of a map from his pocket, showed Elizabeth where they should be going, and gave the crew a few orders. He pulled his own compass from his belt, thinking to compare the two. When he opened his compass, the needle on Elizabeth's suddenly swung toward his. He closed his, and hers pointed north again.

"Elizabeth, come here!"

She walked over from where she had been talking to the gigantic fellow called Yushma Wasit.

"What is it?"

"Look at this. When both compasses are open, yours points towards mine. If Calypso was still around, I'd strangle her! She knew that if I had my compass open, Jones could find me! Was it somehow necessary for me to die and be brought back? Was that part of her plan?"

Elizabeth opened and closed both compasses at different times, seeing that he had told the truth.

"Jack, calm down. Calypso is free and at least relatively content, and Jones is dead and probably with her. But yes, it probably was all part of her plan somehow. I don't know exactly how it all fits in, but it makes sense. Well, if I ever need to find you, I suppose now I'll know how."

He wasn't sure that was a good thing. Anytime she needed a ship to commandeer, she could just leave her compass open until it stopped pointing north. He sighed and closed his compass, fastening it back to his belt. Then he hooked her compass on next to it, so it would be there whenever he need to adjust their course. She went back to whatever she had been doing, and he headed back to the wheel. At some point, he realized that he was no longer angry at Elizabeth Swann, for killing him or for stealing his ship. And the vulnerability he felt scared him to death.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: So this chapter is really short, but someone asked for some J/E action, so here's a wee bit. **

Elizabeth stared at the setting sun on their third day out. If all went well, they would dock on Kin Lee Isle tomorrow. She would have preferred to have a plan for getting back her ship ahead of time, but it was almost impossible to come up with one before she viewed the situation. She could only hope that she had enough men to combat whoever Kling Lee had hired. With Jack and his crew, it was quite possible they outnumbered Kling Lee's men, but that didn't mean they out skilled them. Jack's crew was for the most part made up of misfits and drunks; good enough for sailing, but not the best fighting core. She leaned on the rail and pushed the worry away, telling herself to enjoy the beautiful sunset.

Jack came up beside her and followed her gaze to the glorious sinking of the orange orb. He offered her his bottle of rum, and she took it with a smile of wordless thanks. Sipping it, she spoke in a hushed, almost reverent voice.

"It's beautiful."

She handed the bottle back, but didn't notice that he purposely drank from the place where her lips had been.

"Aye, it is."

He turned sideways to face her, and she looked up slightly puzzled. He spoke, a mischievous smile gracing his handsome face.

"Gibbs always says a kiss at sunset is good luck."

Before she could respond, he dipped his head and pressed his lips briefly to hers. Then he pulled away. And before she could think, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him back down to her. This kiss was longer, deeper, and more passionate, but still relatively short, as they were out on the deck in full view of the crew. She pulled away blushing furiously and stuttering.

"I…I'm sorry…I didn't mean to….I mean.."

He shushed her with a rough finger against her lips and a golden grin.

"Shush Lizzie, it's just twice the good luck. Keep the rum, you look like you need it more than I do."

With that, he handed the bottle back to her and swaggered away. She could have sworn he did a double step at one point, as if he were tempted to skip. She pulled the bottle to her lips again, savoring the memory of that kiss as she savored the rum that tasted so much like him. And it scared her how much she cared about him.


	8. Chapter 8

Jack gripped the wheel as if it were his only connection to sanity. Why on earth had he kissed Elizabeth? She was beautiful, the sunset turning her hair to fire, her face shining with a supernatural light. He couldn't seem to help himself. He had pulled back quickly and braced himself for the inevitable slap, but instead she had pulled his face back down to hers. She tasted like rum and cinnamon. Such a woman was not meant to be alone, and yet her insistence upon independence would make it hard for anyone to keep her.

He could barely believe she had kissed him back. Apparently, she couldn't believe it either. He had never seen her so flustered. Last time, she had had a plan ahead of time, she had been the initiator, she was in control. This time, he had started it, and she had kissed him back just because she wanted to. It scared her, and it both elated and frightened him. At first, he had been amazed and unspeakably happy, but now, he was coming back down to earth, and earth was not his favorite place to be.

Where did they go from here? He would help her get her ship back, and she would leave again. He was still planning to head to The Fountain of Youth, as he had carefully sketched the route to it before trading the chart to Barbossa in exchange for the _Pearl. _He would go there, she would go wherever she wanted to go, and it might be years before they saw each other again. They might never see each other again. An idea occurred to him suddenly, and he smiled. He would offer to let her accompany him to The Fountain Of Youth. She could follow him on _The Empress. _If they ran into any trouble, they would have two ships to combat with instead of only one. And he could see Elizabeth whenever he wanted.

He had made a relatively comfortable bed for himself on the floor of his cabin, and let Elizabeth have the bed. There had been moments where he was tempted to approach her, but he was all too aware of the dagger beneath her pillow. She may like flirting with him, she may even be infatuated with him, but she was still a lady in some ways. He liked her all the more for it. And it wasn't even because she was a challenge, not that she wasn't. Naturally, he was tempted to bed her, but somehow he could not think of Lizzie as being anything other than honorable, at least in that sense of the word. He didn't want to steal that honor from her, pirate or not. Though he wasn't sure where else this could go. Neither of them were the type to settle down, but of course if they were together, they wouldn't have to do anything different than what they were doing now…except he could bed her. He smirked to himself at the thought. Then he shook his head violently. Why on earth was he thinking of marriage? This was so utterly stupid and very un-Captain-Jack-Sparrow-ish! Muttering under his breath, he turned the wheel over to that Chinese giant who scared the rum out of him and headed to his cabin.

Elizabeth was writing in what appeared to be a journal. He went to the cupboard behind her and tried to peek over her shoulder, but she apparently had eyes in the back of her beautiful head, because she laughed, and without turning, spoke.

"Jack, it's not a journal. It's my captain's log. Don't you write down what's happening to your ship and crew? Record weather and all that?"

"Not so much. I write major happenings. But I hate organizing things, and half the time I don't know what the date is, lose track and all that. Can I see it?"

She handed it up to him and he flipped through the pages, so organized it made him cringe. She recorded the weather at least of each day, if nothing else. She recorded when the wind changed, when a storm was spotted on the horizon, everything. Somehow he would have thought Elizabeth was too impatient to spend so much time writing. He handed it back with a grin.

"That, Lizzie, is disturbingly tidy. You need to find yourself a man, lass."

She chuckled, stuffed the log in her small bag of belongings, and pulled out another book. She held it up in front of his face as he sat down on his floorbed with a bottle of rum and some crackers. She spoke slowly as if to a young child.

"This, Captain Sparrow, is a journal. And if you so much as look at it funny, I will shoot you. If you touch it, I will aim to kill. If, Heaven help you, you dare to read it, I will have my men hang and quarter you and throw you to the sharks!"

Despite her humor, he could see that she really wanted him to leave it alone, so he resolved to do so, even though the curiosity was killing him. Better to be killed by curiosity than by a beautiful woman. He smirked.

"Better put a lock on it, Luv. Don't know as I can resist something so definitely not allowed. Pirate and all that. I would think you would understand that better than most."

She rolled her eyes and put her feet up on the table, crossing her ankles. He had a sudden urge to laugh as he pictured her doing the same with a cigar held tightly between her teeth. She wrote for fifteen minutes while he drank rum and drew sketches of _The Black Pearl, _and of her. He sketched himself in caricature and chuckled quietly. She looked up and narrowed her eyes suspiciously, but went back to her writing. Suddenly it hit him that this was what he could be doing for the rest of his life, spending cozy evenings with her, not speaking and yet sharing a silent sense of connection. Then getting in that big warm bed together; to either make love or just hold each other. She could be his, forever and a day. He was shocked by how much he found himself wanting that. When she bid him goodnight and they snuggled into their separate beds, he lay awake for an hour considering where his life could go from here. The answers didn't magically come to him, but he knew his future was somehow joined to Elizabeth Swann's.


	9. Chapter 9

Elizabeth held her pistol tightly as she rounded the corner. Seeing nothing of interest, she turned and waved her men forward. Cautiously, she kept to the shadows as she slipped down the dark alleyway leading to the docks. They had docked _The Black Pearl _in a secluded niche on the eastern side of Kin Lee Isle. Now she saw several small ships and three large ones rising up out of the darkness. Jack came up beside her and whispered in her ear, the closeness making her shudder.

"Can you recognize _The Empress _in the dark? That's the true test. If you really love your ship, you can recognize her in darkness, sense her presence."

"I can recognize her. She's not here, but that doesn't mean she's not on the island. They could have found a little cove, like the one we berthed the _Pearl _in. Wait…"

Jack picked up her thought, his eyes growing wide and his mouth turning down.

"They might be berthed in the same cove…We didn't really check to see. They could have doused the lights…The _Pearl…_"

"Let's go back."

She signaled her men, and they headed back to where they had started. When they approached the cove, there was no sign of any lamps. Horrified, they turned out towards the sea, and there, against the moon were the clear silhouettes of two ships. The lamps were being lit. She gripped Jack's arm, thinking about all of Jack's crewmen who had been left aboard. Jack wrapped his arms around her. She knew how much it hurt him to be separated from his ship, his freedom. She was feeling the same. There was her ship, sailing away in the darkness, and she had no way to follow. She almost felt as if _The Empress _had betrayed her. Kling Lee must have hired a lot of men to be able to sail both ships at once.

Suddenly, Yushma called out.

"Captain! Here be Cap'n Sparra's men, all knocked out, but they'll soon be right as rain. I don't see as anyone's missin'."

Jack let Elizabeth go, and she instantly missed his warmth. She followed him. Sure enough, there they all were, Gibbs, Pintel, Ragetti, Cotton, Marty, and all the others. A couple of them sat up, groaning and holding their heads. Gibbs passed his rum around, but there wasn't much and they were all going to have killer headaches. She pondered why Kling Lee had killed her crewmen but not Jack's. Maybe because they were not so much a threat as hers had been.

Jack turned and motioned for Elizabeth to follow him. When they were quite a ways away from the others, he turned to her, his eyes not sad, as she had expected, but rather eager and full of life.

"Well then, Lizzie, looks like it's time to do some more commandeering. We need to find a ship. Then we'll use my compass and off we go. I know I want my ship back more than anything else right now, what about you?"

She nodded.

"But what if the two ships split up?"

"We'll figure that out when the time comes. For now, lets just get going. We need a little boat, something quick. Remember, it's basically impossible to run down the _Pearl, _but if we can keep her in sight, we can probably get her eventually, when she berths. Come on, the night is young!"

She gasped in surprise when he kissed her, his lips rough on hers. He pulled back before she could respond and grinned like a child on Christmas morning. She couldn't believe how much he was enjoying this. Apparently, he relished the challenge presented by a man who had bested both of them. She felt herself smiling back. Perhaps this would be amusing.

Back at the docks, they snuck around like black cats hunting, until they found the perfect vessel. It was a sleek little boat with one mast and the name _Calypso's Child_ painted on the side in flowing script. A rather ironic name. No one was near, so they all snuck aboard silently and began rowing almost silently out to sea. Soon they were on the trail of the two large ships, the wind was good and pushed them forward at a quick and useful speed. It was rather crowded on deck. There was one cabin. Elizabeth's four men and Jack's eight together with the two captains made a total of fourteen people. Jack and Elizabeth retreated to the cabin.

There was a small bed in one corner, surprisingly clean, as was the rest of the room. A deck and chair were in the middle, and there was a tiny bookshelf holding knick-knacks and a few well-worn books. Some fishing gear stood in one corner, and a map hung on the wall, and that was about the extent of the room's furnishings.

Elizabeth sat on the bed, and Jack turned the chair to face her and sat down. She puzzled over the kiss he had pressed on her lips when they realized the ships were gone. Why had he done that? They had flirted a lot in the last days, but he hadn't kissed her since that sunset. Until tonight. She pushed the thoughts away and focused on a more practical subject.

"Where are you going to sleep? The floor is cramped, and if we shared the bed we would practically have to sleep on top of each other."

He smirked at that and she realized how it had sounded. Wrong thing to say. She blushed.

"Jack Sparrow, you know what I meant!"

"_Captain _luv, and did I say anything? Thought not. Don't scold me for nothing."

She rolled her eyes. He spoke again.

"I'll move the desk against the wall and make room for a floor bed. Don't know if there's any extra blankets though…"

He looked under the bed, and was rewarded. Two thick blankets and a pillow had been stowed beneath. They were a bit dusty, but not too bad. He made a bed out of them. Then he removed his boots, coat, vest, belts, hat, and several trinkets. He took off his bandana. Elizabeth watched curiously, as she had never seen him do so before. He then came over and sat on the floor directly in front of her, with his back to her.

"Would you check my head for knits and lice, Lizzie?"

"What?"

"Lizzie, we're on a ship surrounded by dirty pirates who sleep in mud when they're not on the ship. Do you think there's no chance of catching lice? Look fer little bugs or their little white eggs."

Hesitantly, Elizabeth threw her legs down on either side of him and put her fingers in his hair, something she had been longing to do ever since she met up with him again. She was surprised by how soft and clean it felt. She had thought he didn't care about cleanliness, but it was obvious that he washed his hair. She checked through it carefully. No sign of anything hinting at lice, but she dragged the checking on and on, enjoying the feel of his hair and his head resting on her knee. Finally, she spoke.

"No lice………..Jack?"

She craned her head around him and realized he had fallen asleep with his head on her lap. Smiling, she allowed herself to lean down and kiss his forehead softly. He shifted and muttered something, then slowly opened his eyes and blinked, looking up at her with eyes that made her melt inside. Then he sat up straighter, rubbing his eyes like a sleepy child.

"Sorry, luv. Didn't mean ta fall asleep on ya like that. Guess we'd better turn in."

"Alright. Good night, Jack.

"Night darlin'."

She blew out the candle and snuggled down in the bed, overwhelmed the amazing tenderness he had evoked in her. Fear and excitement rushed through her as she the thought popped into her head. _I love Captain Jack Sparrow. _


	10. Chapter 10

**This chapter's got a random appearance of the hallucination Jacks.**

Jack shook himself awake in the darkness. He had been dreaming of Elizabeth, but the dream frightened him. He had been kissing her, pushing her down on the bed in the captain's cabin of the _Pearl. _ But when she brought her hand up to his cheek, he saw a ring on her wedding finger. And when he looked down to his hand, he found its twin on his own finger. The mixed feeling of elation and fear had awoken him. He had dreamed he was married to Elizabeth.

He rolled over and wondered if his dream was a reflection of what he really wanted. To be with Elizabeth forever, to be free to love her, physically and emotionally. It sounded wonderful, but he was all too well aware of what marriage entailed. No more wenches…but then he couldn't remember the last time he had actually wanted one anyway. He only slept with them to keep his reputation up. And ever since he had met Elizabeth, they had become less and less interesting. Worse, he had begun feeling guilty about it. Something about Elizabeth had at least partially resurrected his long buried conscience. Not good. Not at all good for a pirate. Then there was the fact that all women seemed to want children…but he wasn't sure Elizabeth was like that, and he wouldn't mind one or two to carry on the Sparrow name and the Sparrow legends…What was the matter with him?! He was going insane, thinking of marriage and fidelity and children! Pirates weren't supposed to want those things! But then, few pirates had known anyone like Elizabeth Swann.

In the dim light from the moon filtering through the one small window, he could just make out her shape on the bed. She was laying on her side, and he traced the curve of her hip with his eyes, wanting her. She was so beautiful. What would it be like to have her with him for the rest of his life? He knew it would be wonderful, but was it worth it? Yet despite his mind's insistence that marriage would hamper his freedom, he couldn't think of a single thing that would change it a way he wouldn't like. He ached to have her in every way. He wanted her heart, mind, body, and soul. What would it be like to be connected to someone on so many levels? She was intoxicating. She could made him as mad as a rabid dog, as happy as a tuna fed cat, or as lustful as…a drunk pirate. He sighed and rolled over again, staring at the blackness where the ceiling was. He drifted off to sleep thinking of her.

It seemed like only seconds before he awoke again, sure he had heard a loud noise, yet unsure of what it was. Until he heard a small moan. A whispering voice exclaimed.

"Darn stupid narrow bed!"

"Lizzie? Are you all right? What happened?"

"Oh I'm sorry! I didn't mean to wake you up. I fell out of bed and hit my head."

Her voice sounded funny, and suddenly Jack realized why. She was crying. She must have really hit her head hard. Getting up, he cautiously made his way to the bed, which she had climbed back onto, and sat down beside her.

"Are you okay Luv?"

She sniffled, still trying to hide her tears.

"I'm fine Jack. Don't mind me, just go back to sleep."

"Nay lass, it's not good to hold back tears, they say. If you've got salt water all around you and you're storing a lot of it in your head as well, you'll end up pickling your brain."

Her laughter was carried on a sob. He wrapped his arms around her and drew her against him, holding her lightly and affectionately. She gave in and cried. Not a lot, just a series of sniffles and tiny sobs. Gently he ran his fingers through her silky hair, probing until he found a large bump on one side. He winced. That had to hurt.

"That's quite the goose-egg you've got there Lizzie. I know just the thing."

The room was so small he could reach the desk without letting her go, though the shift in position brought her closer to him, and he shook away a sudden barrage of lustful thoughts. He grabbed the bottle of rum he knew was there and handed it to her. She laughed quietly, then snuffled again. Strange that the first time he had seen Lizzie cry was because of a bump on her head. Even when her father had died, she had been absolutely miserable, but she had not really cried. Even when Will had been stabbed, she had been practically howling in agony, begging for help, but he had seen no tears. When Will left, she had seemed almost relieved. Now, she was crying over bumping her head. Had he missed something? Perhaps she had had a bad dream? That sounded reasonable, so he pursued it.

"Is something else wrong luv? It's not like you to cry about a little pain…"

He was cut off by her palm hitting his face. It was not a hard slap, but he gasped like a fish out of water just from shock. He was sure he had not done anything to deserve that. Her voice was higher pitched than usual, filled with anger and the residue of tears.

"How should you know what makes me cry?! Since when do you care enough to notice?! My father died, and you didn't comfort me, you just stood by feeling happy that I was getting to be as miserable as I made you! My husband was dying, and you just pulled me away from him to save me when all I wanted to do was die too! My husband left me, annulled our marriage, and you just took me to my ship and left me without a word! So how dare you think you know what hurts me, what makes me cry! Just leave me alone!"

Jack stared across the room in puzzlement, and jumped when he saw another copy of himself appear. Stupid hallucinations. He hadn't been having them as much lately, but here was one in full force. It spoke, aiming the full force of his own charming golden grin at him.

"_You know women…they get a bit edgy at some times of the month. Don't worry, she'll forgive you in a few days. Though she'll no doubt bring it all up again next month." _

Jack considered that. Possible…but somehow unlikely. Another version of himself appeared and frowned at the other one.

"_No, that's not right. The issues she brought up are all important. She's been pushing them into the back of her head and forcing herself to think you care about her, but for some reason they just all came to the top, and she wants answers. But I wonder if you even know the answers yourself, Jack. Why DID you do all those things to her? She wanted you to hold her when her father died, and you knew it, but you let the whelp do that. As for the bit about rescuing her from the _Dutchman_, she's being unreasonable about that. My associate over there may have a small point. But she's right about you leaving her on the _Empress. _She wanted you to say you'd see her again, or invite her to come with you, or kiss her goodbye, or SOMETHING, but you just pretended to hate her and let her go. Why did you do that Jack? _

"_Oh posh. She deserved it. You can't just kill a man and then expect him to love you immediately afterward."_

Jack let his hallucinations argue while he turned back to Elizabeth, who was now sobbing in full force. Gently, he reached out and drew her back into his arms. She was too miserable to fight him. Rocking her softly, he spoke, guilt hitting him hard.

"Lizzie, it was wrong of me to do all those things, 'cept maybe saving you while Will was "dying". But I'm here now. I want to make it up to you. I want to hold you enough to make up for every time you needed me and I wasn't there for you. Don't you see Elizabeth? I _love _you."

Jack bit his tongue as the words slipped out. But even though it scared him to death, he knew it was true. He, Captain Jack Sparrow, loved Elizabeth Swann, Pirate Lord of Singapore, Pirate King, Captain of _The Empress, _and the most wonderful woman on earth.

She stilled, presumably even her sobs were frozen in shock. Then he felt her hands on either side of his face and her tear-wet lips pressed on his. The kiss seemed to have a life of its own, deepening and elongating of its own will. The temptation to push her down on the bed and take her fully was almost irresistible. But he somehow managed to disentangle himself, knowing that if he dishonored her now, the guilt of it would haunt him endlessly. She pulled him back down, and he nearly gave in to the manic lust pulsing through him, but he knew she was not in her right mind, half-asleep and needing comfort. Taking his mouth from hers, he spoke in the darkness.

"No, Lizzie, it's not right. You'd hate me in the morning."

"Jack. Since when do you believe in right or wrong? I thought being a pirate was about freedom, doing what you want to do when you want it."

"Not anymore luv. Not since I fell in love with you. You're worthy of so much more than losing your virginity to a dirty pirate just because you need to be comforted. If we're going to do this, we're going to do it right."

He got off the bed, then leaned down to kiss her softly.

"Go to sleep darlin'. We'll talk more in the morning."

"Jack?"

"Hmm?"

"Thank you."

"You're welcome Lizzie-luv. Goodnight."

"Goodnight. Jack?"

"What luv?"

"I love you too."

Giddy joy filled Jack's heart as he lay down on his small makeshift bed and faded into dreams of having Elizabeth as his wife.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: My character are getting a bit….out of character. Sorry about that. PLEASE FORGIVE ME!! I'm just taking a little….artistic license. **

Elizabeth woke in the morning feeling as if she had been crying, but that there was something she should be happy about. She looked around the room, noticing Jack's empty pallet, and it all came rushing back. Jack Sparrow had comforted her when she cried. _Jack Sparrow had told her he loved her! _Jack Sparrow had had enough honor to refuse to make love to her, even though she had practically begged him to. _Jack Sparrow had told her he loved her! Jack Sparrow had told her he loved her! _It rang over and over in her head like a beautiful, chiming bell.

She sat up and pulled on her boots. Grabbing her hat, she smashed it carelessly onto her head and headed outside. It was a wonderfully sunny day. She could just see the outline of _The Black Pearl _and _The Empress _on the horizon. The men were running around, doing this and that, though only about four were doing anything useful. A small craft like this didn't need so many men running about on it. Jack was nowhere to be seen. Perhaps he had changed his mind and was hiding from her so she would not bring last night up. Relief washed over her when his voice called to her from above.

"Mornin' Lizzie-luv! I'd invite ye to come up here, but there's hardly room fer me. I don't know what you'd call this, but it sure isn't a crow's nest."

She looked up and found Jack perched on the tiny platform at the top of the mast, which was only about seven feet tall. He held a viewing glass in one hand and a bottle of rum in the other, which made her wonder how on earth he had managed to climb up. She waved up at him cheerfully.

"Morning Jack. Did you climb up there using only your feet?"

"Aye, why not? Once I climbed the mast of the _Pearl _usin' only my teeth."

She chuckled and wondered how many of his slightly dim-witted crewmen believed that.

"Had breakfast yet Luv? There's some hardtack in the little closet behind the helm. Nasty stuff, but at least this batch ain't got weevils crawlin' round in it."

She grimaced at the thought, but headed towards the closet anyway. She drew out two hardtack biscuits and a bottle of rum and sat on the steps from the deck to the helm. She watched Jack stuff the viewing glass in his belt before climbing down and grinned. She might try climbing that with no hands just to see if it could be done. Jack came and sat down beside her. She smiled at him, searching his eyes for some proof that last night had not been a dream. He leaned forward and brushed her lips with his. He pulled back after only a second or two, but at least she knew he was still interested. She smiled up at him.

"Was last night real Jack? Did all that really happen?"

"Aye, and Lizzie, I do love ye, but don't go expecting me to declare it to the whole world…yet. It's hard for a pirate with a reputation like mine to admit I love anyone. Some people might consider that weakness. But even if I don't say it much, remember I love you."

"Alright. I understand. Jack…I'm sorry I threw myself at you last night. I just…I've been hoping you could love me for so long…and I didn't think it would ever actually happen. I'm sorry."

"'hat's all right Lizzie. And don't think I don't want you, I just knew we'd both regret it come mornin'. I want you to have what you deserve. You're so pure. I'm not going to take that away unless I have the right to."

What did that mean? Was he actually considering….marriage? She tossed that thought away, not wanting to get her hopes up and then have them dashed against sharp rocks. They sat in comfortable silence, drinking and watching the men, who kept tripping over each other on the crowded deck. Finally, Jack spoke.

"'Lizbeth? What happens after we get our ships back? Will you leave? Will I ever see you again?"

Elizabeth didn't think she had ever heard Jack Sparrow sound so insecure and worried. Of course, she had been thinking along the same lines. Would Jack leave her again?

"I don't know what's going to happen Jack. I don't know if I can stay. I need to go and pick up more crewmembers. Four men aren't enough to crew _The Empress. _But of course I'll see you again. I couldn't stay away. Where are you going after we get the ships back?"

"The Fountain of Youth, luv. I was hoping you'd come with me, on _The Empress. _With two ships, we'd be a bit more formidable. We could protect each other, and see each other whenever we wanted."

"It sounds good. Perhaps I can pick some crewmen from the men Kling Lee hired. They're probably mostly mercenaries, and if I pay them enough they'll be faithful. I want to go with you, Jack."

He smiled and kissed her again briefly. Then he got up and went to direct the insanity on the deck. Gibbs had just insulted Yushma, and it was going to be necessary to keep the giant Asian from pounding the older man into the deck. At the same time, Pintel and Ragetti were screaming at each other like angry fishwives. Jack looked back up and waved at her to come down. She decided to handle Yushma and Gibbs, while Jack headed towards the two stooges. Yushma was convinced to leave Gibbs alone, but only after that worthy apologized profusely. Pintel and Ragetti were having some rather stupid argument about how they were related. Pintel thought that Ragetti was his nephew, his sister's child, and therefore should be his personal slave. Ragetti insisted he was Pintel's cousin, that his father had been brother to Pintel's mother, and they were therefore equals. Who knew how it was possible that they had forgotten how they were related. Pintel and Ragetti were the ship clowns, and nobody really cared what they thought.

After having settled the two debates, Elizabeth and Jack retreated to the cabin to discuss what to do next. As soon as the door was shut, however, Jack pulled her into his arms, kissing her eagerly. She responded with equal fervor, burying her fingers in his hair and pressing herself against him. She pressed him back against the door, deepening the kiss urgently. Then, suddenly, she pulled back with a sob. Stunned, he stared at her blankly for a moment before pulling her gently into his arms.

"What is it luv? What's the matter? Did I do something?"

"No…no. It's just that…It was like that when I killed you…I pressed you back like that…It just reminded me of everything I've done to _not_ deserve your love…why on earth do you love me?"

He kissed her, softly. He hadn't realized she had so many buried hurts lingering near the surface of her heart. He had always assumed that she was on the inside what she was on the outside; strong, independent, invincible. As it turned out, she was just as vulnerable as everyone else in the world. He spoke with perhaps more solemnity and thoughtfulness than he ever had before in his life.

"Elizabeth Swann, I love you for being strong for others, even when you are weak in yourself. I love you for being strong enough to do what you think is right, and for being sorry when you later realize it perhaps wasn't. I love you for being strong enough to show me your weaknesses. I love you because you are the most remarkable woman in the world."

She smiled, though her eyes shone with unshed tears.

"That's sweet." She laughed slightly. "How many other girls have you called "the most remarkable woman in the world."?"

He hugged her.

"You may not believe this, but even though I've called women a lot of things they wanted to hear, I've never called a woman remarkable. I've never met a woman who I could call remarkable, even in a lie. Except you. I love you Lizzie…and I forgive you for what you did to me…I forgave you even when I realized what you'd done. I was just too proud to show it after you saved me. I couldn't admit that I loved the woman who killed me. It was foolish, but at least I'm telling you now. Does that count for anything?"

"Of course it does. But I don't deserve it, and I don't understand it. To love the person who killed you…I can't comprehend how anyone could do that."

Jack kissed her again, gently. For once, she let him lead, and was surprised at how soft he was. Every other kiss had been her leading, pushing for more. But now, he kissed her with a gentleness that spoke of reverent love, yet held a subtle taste of intense passion. He was holding back, forcing a rigid control that was surprisingly pleasant; there was no pressure to go further, no desperate need. Just a feeling of encompassing love. As he pulled back and smiled at her lovingly, their solitude was broken by a call from the deck.

"Captain Sparrow, Captain Swann! It looks like the ships are going to berth at the wee island jus' north of here!"

Jack gave her one more light peck on her forehead, then they headed out on deck.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Hope everybody had a good Christmas! I'm going to try to complete all my unfinished stories soon. I've taken a long break, cause my life has been rather chaotic lately. I may be going away for a while soon. So I'll try to tie up all my loose strings and then I might write a long story, but this time I'll write the whole thing before I publish any of it. Feel free to PM me with any Sparrabeth or Norribeth ideas, just **_**NO WILLABETH!!!**_** Lol **

**PS: This is a short chapter. **

The small island to the north was little more than a spit of land with a few buildings and a wharf. Not unlike Kin Lee Island. It didn't have a name, unofficial or otherwise. The few inhabitants just called it "The Island." Jack assured himself that both the stolen vessels had berthed, then steered about to the other side of the island, and anchored the boat in a hidden cove. It was daytime this time, and it was obvious that no one else had found the cove. Apparently Kling Lee had no qualms about docking in broad daylight here. Elizabeth approached Jack with a thoughtful expression that made Jack laugh.

"Don't laugh, Jack. We need a plan before we go. We could try and sneak to where the ships are berthed, overtake the crewmen, and get away before Kling Lee realizes we're here. Or, I could find where Kling Lee has gone- probably some tavern- and challenge him. Or, I could find him and try to start some form of brawl, leave him in the middle of it, and we can steal the ships while he's stuck."

"We have twelve crewmen. That should be about perfect to steer both ships, but we'd need a lot more if we wanted to put up a great fight, so we'd have to assume Kling Lee doesn't have allies here. I suggest you send that big fellow…Yushma, is it? to start a brawl in the tavern. There's only one tavern. We'll each sneak aboard our own ship. You can steer _The Empress _around to this cove and wait for Yushma. I'll head out to open sea. If Kling Lee has any allies with ships, they'll follow me. Then you can fall in behind, and we'll blast any follower from front and back. Sound good?"

"Yes, but what if he's spotted us following him these last couple of days? He could have all his men waiting on the ships."

"Possible, but I doubt it. We've stayed quite far away, and we've been quite a few degrees off his course. If he saw us, he probably just thinks we're a little fishing vessel headed for this island. He would be expecting us to commandeer a larger vessel in which to follow him."

"True. Yes, I think your plan will hold quite well. Let's get to work."

She turned to call Yushma to her, but was surprised when Jack grabbed her and swung her around to face him, standing close.

"Lizzie, be careful. Don't you dare get yourself killed or anything. Alright?"

She smiled and leaned up to brush her lips on his.

"I'll be careful if you will. I love you."

"I love you, Lizzie."


	13. Chapter 13

The noise from the tavern carried through the narrow streets of the tiny harbor. Despite that it was daytime, the inhabitants of this island had little to do with time other than lounge in the tavern, so there were enough men to start a good sized brawl. Elizabeth smiled to herself. Yushma was inherently good at starting trouble. Her three men and two of Jack's accompanied her. She would have been blind to not see that he had given her his best fighters; two big, burly Africans with ferocious faces, but eyes which looked at her that in a way that almost verbally declared "If our captain will protect you, we will too." She liked them immediately. She watched Jack slink into a nearby alley, followed by six men. He was the most intoxicating man she had ever met. Even from this distance, the sight of him smiling at her as he crept along make her insides tremble. She shook thoughts of love and passion from her head and focused on the task at hand. She could see two guards on the deck of each ship, but it was quite possible that there were more hiding below.

She drew her cutlass with easy silence. Assured that it drew quickly, she sheathed it. The crept further down the dock. Both groups then grabbed the rowboats. The fact that longboats from both ships were on the dock was a good sign; it meant quite a few men had gone ashore. Elizabeth had little doubt that the guards had on the ships were as drunk as their compatriots in the tavern. Men left to guard duty, especially mercenaries, very rarely did a good job of it. They rowed the boat around to the back of _The Empress. _Elizabeth grabbed a trailing mooring line and shimmied up the rope easily. Her men followed, quick and efficient. She glanced towards _The Black Pearl, _and could no longer see Jack's rowboat. He must be behind his ship as well.

The two guards were talking, sipping rum and swaying lightly in a way that comfirmed Elizabeth's belief that they were drunk. She grinned at her first mate. His eyes were full of laughter. Assuming there were no hidden reinforcements, this would be almost too easy. They drew their swords and Elizabeth vaulted over the wheel railing and down onto the deck, so that she had her sword at the larger guard's throat before he realized what was happening. She smiled charmingly at him.

"I believe, sir, that commandeering the Pirate King's ship is an offense punishable by death. I am going to be merciful, however, if you cooperate."

The man gulped, his ugly Adam's apple bobbing up and down against her sword-tip.

"Pi…Pirate….KING? We stole the Pirate King's ship?! I didn't know, I swear it! I'm sorry Your Majesty!"

Elizabeth forced herself not to laugh as the young man knelt before her. The other guard followed suit. She turned to the two Africans, both of them also working to contain laughter.

"Throw them in the brig. Watch out for traps down there."

"Aye Captain."

The two drunk guards were hauled down the steps. The Africans returned five minutes later with the news that there had been two more guards, also inebriated, hiding below. All four were now securely imprisoned in the brig. Elizabeth gave the order to cast off and then looked back at the _Pearl. _Fear snaked down her spine when she saw gun smoke. It looked as if Jack and his men were fighting about ten guards. Not too bad, but Jack only had six, and she had the best fighters. Worried, she called to the crew.

"Make for the _Pearl! _Quickly!"

By the time they pulled alongside, only two of the guards were left. Or so Elizabeth thought, until she saw that Jack was fighting Kling Lee himself. Gibbs desposed of the other guard, and everyone turned to watch the Jack and Lee. He fought well, lunging and dodging expertly. There was something sensual about the way Jack fought. As if it were a dance. He was so dark; black hair and dark coat swaying out behind him when he spun, dark eyes flashing fire under kohl-covered lids. Suddenly, he surprised them all by going down, rolling, standing up behind Lee, and stabbing easily, right through Lee's heart. Elizabeth was surprised that he had killed Lee without giving him a chance to surrender. Usually, Jack was too generous for his own good. It seemed he had few qualms about killing anyone who stole his ship.

Lee, clutching his chest as if he could stop his life's blood from flowing out, suddenly spun around and stabbed Jack. Elizabeth couldn't think, couldn't move, couldn't scream. All she could do was watch in stunned horror as Jack and Kling Lee crumpled to the deck side by side, their blood mingling on the hard wood. One word pushed it's way through the thick veil of terror surrounding her heart.

_NO! _


	14. Chapter 14

Elizabeth rushed to where the two bodies lay. Kneeling beside Jack, forcing herself not to panic, she rolled him onto his back and looked for the wound. She found it, and was relieved instantly. It was just below his left shoulder. A few inches more, however, and her fears would have been well founded. It wasn't even the wound that had made him fall. She could see now that he had tripped on a loose board, fallen, and hit his head hard on the deck, knocking him unconscious. She laughed from pure relief as he came to, blinking at her. Forcing herself to concentrate, she studied the wound. His left arm would be out of commission for quite a while. The blade had gone right through him, no doubt wreaking havoc on all the muscles and tissue in its way. He was bleeding quite profusely. Gibbs, at Elizabeth's order, rushed below to find a clean shirt, which Elizabeth cut into serviceable bandages.

The men moved Jack to his cabin, and Elizabeth pondered what to do next. If she left Jack on his ship injured, the men would probably let it get infected. Besides, her first mate could handle temporarily captaining _The Empress, _but none of Jack's men could handle the _Pearl. _She would stay here, she decided. And she couldn't deny that she was glad for an excuse to stay with Jack. She could only hope no lasting damage was done. It was possible his left arm would always be slightly less capable than his right. Worried, she headed into the cabin. Jack had propped himself up on the pillows, and was distractingly shirtless. Elizabeth rolled her eyes at her own thoughts and sat on the edge of the bed.

"How do you feel?"

"I've felt a lot worse. 'Course, I've also felt a lot better. I'll live."

"I should hope so. What happened?"

"When we boarded, there were two guards on deck. Then Kling Lee and his other men came clambering up the steps from the hold before we could check down there. You saw enough to get the point."

She nodded absently before reaching to check the bandaging again. Before she could do so, however, he yanked her down to him and kissed her eagerly. He pulled back only briefly, whispering hoarsely. "I was so afraid I would lose you." Then he kissed her again. In most cases, when she initiated their embraces, she was eager and urgent, and he had to practically pry her away from him to retain her honor. If he led, their kisses tended to be soft and gentle. Not so this time. This time he was aggressor, kissing her with violent passion, drawing blood with his teeth on her lips, as if the warmth of her blood would assure him they really were both alive. He wanted her, and she wanted him, and they loved each other, and she couldn't understand why he did not take her. But he pushed her away almost as violently as he had kissed her. The fierce lust in his black eyes faded slowly, leaving only a trace behind. He ran his finger over her slowly bleeding lip, then looked into her eyes with an intense gentleness.

"Lizzie. I love you so much it scares me. I can't take the thought of losing you. I want you to be with me forever. And I don't care how infernally decent it is, I want you to be mine forever. Will you, Lizzie? Will you marry me?"

Shocked, and yet somehow not shocked, Elizabeth just stared into his dark chocolate eyes, reading the sincerity there, seeing not a trace of teasing or uncertainty. He meant it. He had made up his mind to love her the right way, and he was perfectly happy with that descision. She could feel herself smiling, even as the so oft refered to happy tears flooded her eyes.

"Yes. Oh Jack, yes! I never thought….I love you so much!"

He kissed her again, but this time softly, almost reverently. Pulling back, he smiled into her eyes; one of his rare sincere smiles that were not merely for the purpose of everyday smirking. Then he let his playful smirk transform him into the Jack Sparrow she had originally met, and he shooed her out of the cabin so that he could get some sleep.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: This is it! Last chapter….I may or may not do an epilogue. Thank you to everybody for being so patient and for all the lov-er-ly reviews. Like I (think) I said before, I'm going to try to tie up all my stories, bring them all to a close (or at least put it in the summary that I don't intend to finish them.) Then, I may or may not do something big-ish. We shall see, all in good time. Luv ya all! **

Elizabeth laughed as Jack grabbed her away from Gibbs and swung her around. He was a very good dancer when he wasn't drunk. Somehow she wasn't surprised. He seemed much more cultured and educated than his crew. No matter. She had the rest of her life (which, if they found the Fountain, would be a very long time) to find out about Jack. Tonight, however, was not a night to think about past or future. Tonight was a night for the present. Tonight was her wedding night.

Cotton tapped Jack on the shoulder and bowed to Elizabeth. His parrot squawked. "Have a dance? Have a dance?" Laughing, Elizabeth glanced into Jack's shining eyes for a moment before letting the gruff old man swing her back into the dance. Being the only woman on board, not to mention the bride, Elizabeth was very much in demand as a dance partner. She was wearing a lovely white, ankle-length dress with a wide skirt that swished out when she spun. Jack said it was something Spanish dancers wore. It made a charming wedding dress.

Jack let Cotton have a couple of minutes before he stole his wife back. Ragetti, who had (weirdly enough) rather a talented hand with a violin, switched to playing a slow song, a love song, and the pirates retreated, watching the newlyweds dance slowly, probably hoping they'd do a bit of smooching.

Holding his bride close, Jack leant down and nibbled lightly on her ear as he whispered. "Want to give them a show?" He kissed her neck. She laughed breathily. "No, I don't think so. I'd rather get them all so dead drunk that they'll sleep soundly all night. I certainly wouldn't put it past them to all stand outside the cabin door and listen, or even try to find little holes in the wall to peek through. He chuckled. "Very true. Well then, shall we break out the rum?" "Yes, but don't you dare go getting drunk." He grinned and stepped away from her, addressing the crew in his grand, sweeping manner.

"Gentlemen! It is time….to have rum!"

A laughing cheer went up, and several men ran to drag barrels out of the hold. Jack sat on the deck steps and pulled Elizabeth onto his lap, resting his chin on her shoulder and smiling to himself as the crew acted like so many children on Christmas morning. Elizabeth leaned back against him, her hair smelling like cinnamon and soap. He could barely believe that she was actually his wife. Jack hadn't actually really liked the idea of performing his own wedding, so he had made Gibbs 'temporary captain' and let him do it. Gibbs liked doing that sort of thing, since it involved him talking a lot. Jack reached around to take Elizabeth's hand, smiling at the ring he had given her. It was beautiful gold band, with a tiny, perfectly polished black pearl in the center, surrounded by diamonds. It was one of the few things he had bought honestly in all his years of pirating. He hadn't wanted Elizabeth wearing a ring that was stolen. He had had to pay dearly for that ring, and it made it so much more worth it to see her look of delight when he slipped it on her finger.

Elizabeth shifted so that she was sitting sideways, and brushed her lips lightly against his. Feeling a sudden rush of need, Jack wrapped his hand around the back of her neck and kissed her deeply. She responded delightfully, holding him tightly as he ravished her mouth. He wanted her. And now, it was right.

Glancing up, Jack discovered that the men were already quite drunk, throwing back mug after mug of strong drink. He kissed Elizabeth's neck and ear and whispered heated suggestions. She giggled like a happy little girl and allowed him to sweep her right off her feet and carry her into his cabin, amidst drunken cheers by the few men still lucid enough to even notice them.

Elizabeth delighted in every touch, every kiss. He was so incredibly gentle. The wanting was urgent and fast, but when it came to the actual consummation of their marriage, he was gentle, letting her adjust to the newness and the pain. He made it so that, when she looked back on that night, she could never remember the pain; only the pleasure and the intense love.

Love had changed them both, at least in matters relating to the other. Jack had become softer, he respected her, honored her, cherished her. Elizabeth had learned to let him lead, to respect him, to trust his judgment. To the world, they still presented the same face; two pirates, each captain of their own ship (though Elizabeth spent very little time on hers), each ruthless when need be. But inside, they both knew they had been changed.


	16. Epilogue 1

**A/N: I'm thinking I'm going to do two epilogues, if that makes any sense. This is the first. I never did get around to having a rematch of that duel near the beginning….Until now…Da-da-da-daaaaa! **

Jack peered out into the sunlight, squinting at his beautiful wife, who was standing right in front of the sun. On purpose, no doubt. Troublesome woman. He forced himself not to smile. Smiling would just make her angrier. She stood there, her hair in the sun looking like fire, hands on her hips, glaring at him. He had made some slight joke about her putting on weight, and she had burst into tears, of all things! He had been _obviously _joking! Women and their hormones!

"Jack, I demand a duel! You wanted a rematch of the last one, and now I have my pride to defend."

"Lizzie. Love, you're not thinkin' straight. And that's how I lost last time, remember? I got angry, and it messed me all up. Now the shoe's on the other foot, ain't it? You're quite certain to lose."

"Making excuses, eh Jack? Don't want to get beat by a woman again?"

He obliged her, drawing his cutlass easily and smirking at her.

"If you really want to fight, Darling. You know I'd do anything for you."

She lunged at him, and for a split second he thought she intended to kill him. She directed the blade to his, however, trying to disarm him immediately. He fought back with quick, light strokes, not wanting to risk hurting her, but rather hoping to prolong the fight until her anger was spent. They danced perfectly, and after fifteen minutes of rather boring swordplay, he could see that she was no longer angry, but still very much determined to win. She smiled at him cheerfully.

"I think I'll forgive you for you're cutting remark, but I'm still going to beat you. Your loss last time had nothing to do with you being angry. I'm just a better fighter."

He smirked and began a swift barrage of swings, backing her into a corner. The crew had watched at first but now seemed disinterested.

"Jack?" she spoke in a quiet voice as they continued clanking their swords together almost boredly. "Yeah?" "I'm pregnant." In the moment of shock from that, Jack forgot what they were doing, and she disarmed him with a huge beaming smile. Realizing she had made the statement up to distract him, he glared at her.

"Cheater!" "Pirate." She turned to walk away as he bent to pick up his cutlass, but then she turned back to him. "Oh, and Jack?" "What?" He responded somewhat irritably. "I meant it." And then she was gone, leaving him to stare after her with his mouth hanging just a little bit open.


	17. Epilogue 2

**A/N: Okay, so this is the REAL epilogue. This is just dealing with Will coming back ten years later to see what became of Elizabeth after he annulled their marriage and left. **

Will sighed as he looked at _The Empress _and _The Black Pearl _beached side by side near the wharf in Singapore. He was slightly annoyed to find that Jack had come to meet him as well as Elizabeth. Then again, he supposed he shouldn't feel bitter towards Jack anymore. The pirate had saved his life, after all. Yet, in saving Will's life, Jack had ruined Will's dreams. After all, Will could not in good conscience continue his impromptu marriage. He couldn't leave a woman as young and full of life and passion as Elizabeth to spend the rest of her life basically alone. It wouldn't be fair to her. He had left her a virgin. She would find another man. Suddenly it accured to him that that might be why Jack was here. Surely they were not….A sick feeling filled him as the he clambered into the rowboat and headed for the docks.

Jack was waiting on the docks, looking not a day older. In fact, he looked younger. There was no sign of Elizabeth.

"Hello, Jack." "Hullo, William. Good to see ya. Been enjoying immortality? I have. Went and found the Fountain of Youth. But I reckon you're not nigh as interested in me as you are in your former dearly beloved, eh? Elizabeth! Turner's here!"

The _Pearl _had been beached for careening, and Elizabeth swung down from it on a rope, then ran up onto the dock. She threw her arms around Will's neck in a big, friendly hug before he could get a good look at her. She felt just the same at first- alternatingly soft and firm in all the right places- but he realized something was different. He pulled back and looked at her face. Like Jack, she had not aged. She looked perfect. So what had set alarm bells ringing when he held her? He held her by the shoulders and looked her up and down. The sick feeling grew ten times worse than before when he saw the roundness of her stomach. Just beginning to show, he guessed. He had little doubt as to who the father was. When he looked back at her face, he could see that she was reading his thoughts. He was angry and ashamed of her. She had let herself be seduced by a pirate who would never make an honest woman out of her.

"Will. Listnen. Don't jump to conclusions." Her voice was quiet. "Jack and I have been married for nine years, Will. He loves me. Really loves me. He didn't even make love to me until our wedding night. All of our children are legitimate. This will be the third. So don't look at me like I've become a common whore. I'm a pirate, but I'm also a wife."

Will tried very hard to absorb all this, but the thought of Jack settling down, of having been married for nine years, was just outrageous. Then again, it was nearly impossible not to love Elizabeth. Shocked, he turned to Jack.

"Is it true?" Jack looked him seriously in the eye. "Yes. I love her, mate. You don't dishonor someone you love."

Despite that a rather large part of his heart was still very much in love with Elizabeth, Will felt an enormous burden lift off his shoulders. Elizabeth would be looked after, loved for eternity by a man who had apparently proved himself very worthy of her. For the first time, Will felt he could honestly say that he liked Jack Sparrow very much. The two men shook hands, but then the level of solemnity faded and Elizabeth dragged Will off to meet Marina and little Teague. It suddenly occurred to Will that now he would always have someone waiting for him, not a wife, but a family of friends, as immortal as he was, who would always be there to meet him, one day every ten years.


End file.
